Massachusetts Rules Regarding Expert Witness Depositions and Interrogatories There is no general right to depose expert witnesses in Massachusetts, even those that are expected to testify at trial. However, Rule 26(b)(4)(A)(ii) of the Massachusetts Rules of Civil Procedure provides that, upon motion, a court may order discovery beyond the generally allowed means, discussed in the [...]
The Louisiana Court in the case of THE ESTATE OF LOUIS D. HAEUSER, v. WESTCHESTER SURPLUS LINES INSURANCE COMPANY, Civil Action No. 13-5631 United States District Court, E.D. Louisiana (March 10, 2015) dealt with a bad faith insurance claim as a result of Hurricane Isaac. The Court denied an attempt to halt discovery of a [...]
Expert Witness: Tax Returns & 1099’s The court in SHARON R. OLSON v. STATE FARM FIRE COMPANY, Case No.C14-0786RSM United States District Court, W.D. Washington, Seattle (February 23, 2015) dealt with a motion to quash a broad subpoena for the tax records and 1099’s of a medical expert. The court denied the attempt to force [...]
All expert witnesses should be familiar with the standard jury instruction given by judges to jurors on expert witnesses. It reads as follows: JURY INSTRUCTION ON EXPERT WITNESSES The rules of evidence normally do not permit witnesses to testify as to opinions or conclusions. There is an exception to this rule for "expert witnesses." An [...]
How far can opposing counsel go in trying to demonstrate bias of an expert witness? The rules may vary from state to state. In Jordan Grabel, M.D., and State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, v. Linda Sterrett and Michael Sterrett, No. 4D14-4780 District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fourth District, April 29, 2015 the court [...]
Expert Witnesses want to be aware of the latest technology employed by lawyers used to test arguments and evidence. The MIT Technology Review V. 118 No. 3 May/June 2015 ran a very interesting article entitles “path of persuasion.” Here is what trial lawyers are now doing to test out their cases and evidence: Pretrial Technology [...]
Overly protective gatekeepers are costing medical and other expert witnesses millions of dollars per year. If this seems to you to be a bit of an overstatement let’s look at one recent example we encountered at SEAK. Case Example We received a call from an attorney at a large law firm. He located an expert [...]
The most common problem that expert witnesses face is non-payment or slow payment of their fees by lawyers who retain them. Many of these expert witnesses do not have a written retention contract signed by counsel. Example I was recently contacted by an expert witness who was asked to investigate a claim and write a [...]
Expert witnesses are now actively marketing their expert witness services through the use of: Expert witness directories Display and other advertising Speaking and lecturing Writing Ten tips for expert witnesses to market their practice include: An expert should identify and pursue his niche. The best experts budget the time and money needed to [...]
A recent SEAK survey of trial lawyers indicated that now trial lawyers prefer experts who have received formal expert witness training. Here are some of the reviews these trial lawyers have given for advantages of using trained experts: A trained expert knows how to bill for their time without identifying in their billing invoices any [...]